Toy toaster

ABSTRACT

A toy pop-up toaster includes a presettable, spring actuated timing mechanism which is actuated when a lever is depressed to lower simulated bread slices into the toaster housing.

United States Patent 1 [111 3,765,i2 Waak Oct. 16, 1973 [54] TOY TOASTER 1,931,450 /1933 Warner 99/335 [75] Inventor: Gerald A. Waak, Manitowoc, Wis.

[73] Assignee: Aluminum Specialty Company, Primary EXaminerL0l1iS Mancfine Manitowoc, Wi Assistant Examiner-J. Q. Lever A d E. F 'd1 1. Filed: sept- 1972 ttorney Raymon 1 er et a [21] Appl. N0.: 287,280

. [57] ABSTRACT [52] US. Cl. 46/14 [51] In. A toy pop up toaster includes a presettable spring ac- [58] Field of Search 46/14; 99/335 tuated timing mechanism which is actuated when a lever is depressed to lower simulated bread slices into [56] References Cited the toaster housing.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,058,259 10/1962 Y Kripak 46/14 5 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures I l/III [il /I I III/I 1W1 III, 28 g] i 2?- a e il l a 1 i "I; 1r I I 30 82-l 6 52 if. i 4 58 6 9 v 2 6 I \\nn)...t \y\ I I8 cf 0 I) a. A 5: 43 47 24 if 1 J 48 49 2 'J 76 FT Fe J ii k PATENTEDUBTIBIQB 3.765.120

SHEET 20F 3 FIG. 2

FIG 4 FIG. 3

PATENTED 1 61915 3;. 165 120- SHEET 3 BF 3 FIG. 6

nism which permits the child to adjust the length of time simulated bread slices remain in the toaster housing'before popping up.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is well known that all people, but especially children, are attracted by and enjoy toys which realistically simulate common functioning utilitarian devices. Moreover, toys which require some manipulation of different things or parts are not only amusing but aid in the physical and mental development of the child. Simulated pop-up toasters are known in the art, see US. Pat. No. 3,058,259, wherein a spring is wound up and times out a fixed time period before releasably actuating a latch to permit a bread supporting rack to pop up. Such devices have been costly to build and have not included any means enabling the child to adjust the length of time the simulated bread slices remain in the toasting position.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a new and improved pop-up type of toy toaster.

Another object of this invention is to provide a toy pop-up'toaster which enables the user to adjust the length of time the simulated bread slices are in the toasting position.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Briefly, the above and further objects of the present,

FURTHER DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Further objects and advantages and a better understanding of the invention may be had from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a toy toaster embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a simulated bread supporting rack employed in the toaster of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional viewof FIG. 2 taken along the line 3-3 thereof;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the bread supporting rack shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view, partly in section, of the toaster of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a horizontally sectioned view of the toaster of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged, perspective view of a portion of the latching and timing mechanism of the present invention; and

FIG. 8 is an enlarged elevational view of another portion of the latching and timing mechanism of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIGS. 1, 5, and 6, a spring-action toy toaster embodying the present invention includes a hollow housing 2 formed by a cover member 3 and a base or platform 4 onto which the cover member 3 is secured. The members 3 and 4 are preferably formed of a molded plastic material, such, for example, as high impact polystyrene, although it is to be understood that other suitable materials may be employed. The top of the cover mem ber 3 is identified by the numeral 5 and includes a pair ofparallel slots 8 opening into the interior of the housing 2 to permit simulated bread slices to be inserted into the housing and to be popped up therefrom. Outwardly extending flanges 10 are integrally molded into the cover member 3 to form a pair of handles.

A rack 12 for supporting simulated slices of bread is best shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 and includes a pair of relatively deep grooves 14 adapted to be disposed directly below the slots 8 for receiving the bottom portions of the simulated bread slices. The sides of the grooves thus hold the. simulated bread slices in a substantially vertical position out of engagement with the sides of the slots 8. As is explained in greater detail hereinafter, the rack 12 is manually lowered by means of an actuating arm 17 which extends through a slot 18 in the end wall of the cover member 13 and is held in the down position by a time delay mechanism. The time delay period is set by means ofa rotatable control knob 15 disposed on the front wall of the cover member 3.

In use, two simulated bread slices are respectively placed in the slots 8 to rest in the bottoms of the grooves 14. The time delay mechanism is then set by rotating the knob IScounterclockwise to the position corresponding to the desired toasting time, and the lever 17 is depressed to the bottom of the slot 18 to lower the rack 12 to bring the entire simulated bread slices into the housing and to latch the rack 12 in the depressed position. Moving the rack 12 into the down position actuates the timing mechanism which times out the selected time interval and then releases the rack holding latch to permit the rack to snap up and cause the simulated bread slices to pop up.

Considered in greater detail, the knob 15 is mounted on the end of a shaft 18 extending through the front wall of the cover member 13. A latching disc 20 is fixedly secured to the shaft 18 and is formed as the major segment ofa disc from which a radial arm 24 extends beyond the diameter of the disc 20. The disc 20 has a flat edge 25 lying perpendicular to the arm 24. In FIGS. 5 and 6, the latching disc 20 is shown in a released position wherein the flat edge 25 is in a substantially vertical position to permit an associated latching dog 30 fixed to the rack 12 to move up and down. A coil spring 26 positioned on a fixedly mounted guide rod 27 biases the rack 12 into the upper position and causes the simulated bread slices to pop up when the dog 30 is in the depressed position and is released by the latching member 20. A second guide rod 28 slidably extends through the center portion of the rack 12 to maintain it in horizontal alignment. It may be seen that if the knob is left in the timed-out position, i.e., zero toasting time, and the lever 17 is depressed and then released, the bread slices will immediately pop up through the slots 8.

The dog 30 is a flat strip of resilient, flexible material such as plastic, and the upper end portion thereof is positioned within and secured to a U-shaped bracket 33 forming as an integral part of the rack 12. Near the lower end of the dog 30 there is provided an upwardly facing shoulder 35 for cooperative engagement with the arcuate rim portion of the latch disc 20 to maintain the rack in the depressed position during the toasting period. An inwardly tapered surface 34 connects the shoulder 35 to the bottom of the dog and cams the dog past the rear face of the disc 22 when the rack 12 is depressed while the latch 20 is in a timing position as illustrated in FIG. 7. When the leftward edge of the shoulder as viewed in FIG. 7 moves below the adjacent portion of the rim, the resiliency of the strip moves the shoulder under the rim to latch the rack 12 in the depressed position. When the latch 20 has timed out the preset toasting period and the flat edge 25 moves in a clockwise direction into a substantially vertical position the shoulder is freed and the spring 31 abruptly raises the rack 12 to pop up the simulated toast slices. In the elevated position as shown in FIG. 5, the lower end portion of the dog is adjacent the flat surface 25 and prevents clockwise rotation of the knob which might otherwise damage the timing mechanism.

In order to control the speed at which the latch rotates during the toasting period, a gear train and Geneva movement assembly 40 are provided. More particularly, an open frame formed by integral walls 41, 42, 43, and 45 is fastened to the base member 4 by means of screws 47 extending through suitable holes in a pair of ears 48 extending from the respective end walls 42 and 43. The screws 47 are threadedly received in tapped bosses 49 and 50 on the upper surface of the base 4. As 'best shown in FIG. 4, the rear end portion ofthe shaft 18 is journalled in circular holes in the front and back walls 45 and 41 which permit rotational movement of the shaft 18 but prevents any substantial lateral movement thereof.

The gear train consists of a large spur gear 52 which is fixed on the shaft 18 and mates with a smaller gear 54 mounted on a jack shaft 55 slidably mounted in a pair of angularly disposed slots in the front and rear walls 41 and 45. By thus mounting the shaft 55, the shaft can be rotated counterclockwise without driving the gear 54 and the remainder of the gear train. A large spur gear 58 which may be integral with the gear 54 is adapted to mate with a small spur gear 60 mounted on a jack shaft 61 journalled in circular holes in the front and rear walls 41 and 45. A large spur gear 63, which is preferably integral with the gear 60 mates with a small gear 65 fixed on a shaft 67 journalled in circular holes in the walls 41 and 45. Also mounted on the shaft 67 is a star wheel 69 forming part of a Geneva type intermittent motion assembly 70. This assembly as best shown in FIG. 8 further includes a rocket arm 71 pivotally mounted on a shaft 72 mounted by the front and rear walls 51 and 45 and having a pair of tooth members 73 and 74 for alternately engaging and stopping the upper and lower teeth of the star wheel 69.

With the knob 15 set in a timing position, a tension spring 76 stretched between the arm 24 on the latch 20 and a fixedly disposed bracket 77 integral with the front wall 45 urges the latch 20 and thus the gear 52 in a clockwise direction. This clockwise torque is transmitted to the gear 54 and forces the shaft 55 downwardly and to the right in the slot 57 as shown in FIG.

5 to bring the gear 58 into mating engagement with the gear 60. As may thus be seen, the driving force for the timing mechanism is provided by the spring 76 and the rotation is controlled by the Geneva type movement 70.

In order to prevent initiation of the timing or toasting period until the rack 12 is depressed to the lower toasting position, there is provided in accordance with an important aspect of the present invention a locking mechanism including a leaf spring 77 fixedly mounted at one end on a boss 78. The spring is self-biased in an upward direction against an arm 80 which extends laterally from the lower end of the rocket arm 71 to jam the tooth 74 thereon tightly into the adjacent tooth space on the star wheel 69 and prevent rotation thereof. The spring 77 is, however, adapted to be moved downwardly out of engagement with the arm by means of a post 82 which depends from the bottom of the rack 12. In FIG. 8, the lower end of the post 82 is shown in the toasting position wherein the spring 77 is bent downwardly to permit the rocket arm 71 to oscillate in the normal manner to control the speed of rotation of the latching cam 20.

OPERATION Assuming that the toaster is in the condition shown in FIG. 5, the child will place slices of bread in the slots whereby they will rest in the grooves 14 of the rack 12 with the upper half of the slices disposed above the top surface 5. The knob 15 is then rotated counterclockwise to position the pointer thereof opposite one of the graduation markers 16 on the front face of the toaster. During this preset operation the shaft 55 moves upwardly in the slots 57 to move the gear 58 out of mating engagement with the gear 60, whereby the Geneva movement is disconnected from the gear train so that the knob 15 can be quickly and easily rotated. This stretches the spring which exerts a clockwise driving force on the latching disc 20 and on the gear 52. Since, however, the rack 12 is held in the elevated position by the spring 26, the leaf spring is in the locking position agianst the arm which prevents rotation of the star wheel 69 and the remainder of the gear train. Consequently, although the timing mechanism is set, it does not operate. The child then depresses the lever 17 to the bottom of the slot 18 to lower the simulated bread slices into the toasting position. During such movement the dog 30 is cammed rearwardly behind the latching disc 20 until the shoulder 35 clears the disc 20 whereupon the dog springs forwardly to position the shoulder 35 under the rim of the disc 20 to latch the rack 12 in the down position. Simultaneously, the post 82 engages the spring 77 and moves it away from the arm 80 to unlock the gear train. Under the control of the star wheel 69 and the associated rocket arm 70 the latching disc rotates clockwise in angular increments until the flat edge surface 25 reaches the shoulder 35 and the dog 30 is released. The spring 26 then expands to snap the rack 12 into its uppermost position to cause the simulated bread slices to pop up through the slots 8.

As explained hereinbefore, when the timing mechanism is in the condition shown in FIG. 5, the control knob 15 cannot be rotated clockwise by virtue of the lower end of the dog 30 engaging the upper portion of the surface 25 on the latching disc 20.

While the present invention has been described in connection with a particular embodiment thereof, it will be understood that those skilled in the art may make many changes and modifications without departing from the true spirit and scope thereof. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A toy toaster adapted for use with simulated bread slices, comprising a housing provided with at least one simulated bread slice receiving opening in the top,

a simulated bread slice supporting member disposed in said housing,

means mounting said supporting member for vertical movement between upper and lower positions, spring means urging said member into said upper position,

manually settable timing means mounted within said housing and including a latch for latching said supporting member in said lower position during a timing period,

said timing means including a gear train and means for intermittently restricting the rotation of the gears in said gear train,

locking means including a spring biased into engagement with said means for intermittently restricting the rotation of the gears in said gear train for prethe gears in said gear train from said control member when said control member is being moved in a setting direction.

3. A toy toaster adapted for use with simulated bread slices, comprising a housing provided with at least one simulated bread slice receiving opening in the top,

a simulated bread slice supporting member disposed in said housing,

means mounting said supporting member for vertical movement between upper and lower positions,

spring means urging said supporting member into said upper position,

manually settable timing means mounted within said housing and including a spring driven rotatable latch member and a latching dog carried by said supporting member,

said latching dog having a stop surface positioned in proximity to said latch member when said supporting member is in said upper position to prevent rotation of said latch member in one direction only,

locking means for preventing the operation of said timing means, and

means for rendering said locking means inactive when said supporting means is in the lower latched position.

4. A toy toaster according to claim 3, wherein said latch member is the major segment of a disc rotatably mounted on a horizontal axis, and

said latching dog is a resilient member depending from said supporting member.

5. A toy toaster according to claim 4, wherein said timing means comprises tension spring means connected at one end to said housing and connected at the other end to said latch member for exerting a torque thereon. 

1. A toy toaster adapted for use with simulated bread slices, comprising a housing provided with at least one simulated bread slice receiving opening in the top, a simulated bread slice supporting member disposed in said housing, means mounting said supporting member for vertical movement between upper and lower positions, spring means urging said member into said upper position, manually settable timing means mounted within said housing and including a latch for latching said supporting member in said lower position during a timing period, said timing means including a gear train and means for intermittently restricting the rotation of the gears in said gear train, locking means including a spring biased into engagement with said means for intermittently restricting the rotation of the gears in said gear train for preventing the operation of said timing means, and means for rendering said locking means inactive when said supporting means is in the lower latched position.
 2. A toy toaster according to claim 1, comprising a manual timing period set control member in said timing means, clutch means in said gear train for disconnecting said means for intermittently restricting the rotation of the gears in said gear train from said control member when said control member is being moved in a setting direction.
 3. A toy toaster adapted for use with simulated bread slices, comprising a housing provided with at least one simulated bread slice receiving opening in the top, a simulated bread slice supporting member disposed in said housing, means mounting said supporting member for vertical movemEnt between upper and lower positions, spring means urging said supporting member into said upper position, manually settable timing means mounted within said housing and including a spring driven rotatable latch member and a latching dog carried by said supporting member, said latching dog having a stop surface positioned in proximity to said latch member when said supporting member is in said upper position to prevent rotation of said latch member in one direction only, locking means for preventing the operation of said timing means, and means for rendering said locking means inactive when said supporting means is in the lower latched position.
 4. A toy toaster according to claim 3, wherein said latch member is the major segment of a disc rotatably mounted on a horizontal axis, and said latching dog is a resilient member depending from said supporting member.
 5. A toy toaster according to claim 4, wherein said timing means comprises tension spring means connected at one end to said housing and connected at the other end to said latch member for exerting a torque thereon. 